PART 6 HARDWARE NEEDED TO RUN A MACINTOSH BBS WHAT HARDWARE

---------------- Continued from previous message -----
PART 6
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HARDWARE NEEDED TO RUN A MACINTOSH BBS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHAT HARDWARE IS NEEDED TO RUN A MACINTOSH BBS?
====================
3.10 - THE BASICS
====================
Almost any Macintosh from a Macintosh Plus on can run a BBS,
but the most powerful packages require a 68030 and higher to run
effectively. Speed on BBS's can be increased by getting a faster
drive, because much of what a BBS does is access the hard drive to
gain information.
==========================
3.11 - A MINIMUM MACHINE
==========================
Using text only (ANSI or VT100) packages, you can use almost any Mac
with 1 meg of memory. Using the graphical BBS's can be used on a Mac
Plus and up, but performance severely degrades. The bright point is
that being the Mac, most packages will run on any machine from a Plus
up.
================================================
3.12 - HARD DRIVES & ACCESSING INFORMATION
================================================
The hard drive will be the most important factor in speed on you BBS.
With a BBS you are accessing information. Information available from
your hard drive. Thus the fast the hard drive used, the faster your
BBS will be.
========================================
3.13 - ACCELERATING YOUR MACINTOSH BBS
========================================
As much of your BBS as possible should be loaded into RAM in order to
speed up access. RAM is much faster than any hard drive available.
============================
3.14 - CD ROMS & YOUR BBS
=============================
Most of the BBS packages will allow you to easily add a CD ROM to
your set-up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SETTING UP PHONE LINES ON A MACINTOSH
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
============================
3.15 Serial ports on a Mac
============================
"I'd like to start my BBS with a few phone lines, how do I setup
multiple phone lines on a Macintosh? "
=========================================================
3.16 Multiport cards for expanding the number of lines
=========================================================
What hardware is needed?"
--------------------------
To go beyond two phone lines, you will need to add a multiport serial
card or a SCSI.
Hurdler Nubus cards from Creative Systems
--------------------------------------------
Dual and Quad serial port cards for the Mac. Capable of up to 57,000
baud performance per port.
COST:
2 port $299
4 port $379.
Hustler Nubus cards from Creative Systems
-------------------------------------------
A card designed for the new V.Fast modem. Capable of speeds up to
230,000 baud on one port, or 115,000 baud on two ports. Available in
two port versions only.
COST: $329
QuadraLink
--------------
=====================================
3.17 - SCSI interfaces for expansion
=====================================
Creative Systems - Hurdler standalone - SEQS - Adds four serial
ports to any Mac with a SCSI interface in a standalone box.
COST: $695.00
Creative Systems
4701 Randolph Road, Suite #12
Rockville, MD 20852 USA
(301) 984 - 0261 Fax (301) 770-1675
=================================================
3.18 - Other connection types for the Macintosh
=================================================
TCP
----
The standard Internet connection type. To be built into version 7.5
of the Macintosh system.
UUCP
----
UNIX to UNIX protocol. Used for receiving batch news and mail
from the Internet.
X.25
----
ISDN
-----
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MODEMS & THE MACINTOSH BBS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3.19 - Modems
3.20 - Carrier detect and the Macintosh
3.21 - Hardware handshaking and the Macintosh
3.22 - High speed modems
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE MACINTOSH & PUBLIC NETWORKS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
===========================
3.23 - N o v a W o r l d
===========================
INTRODUCTION TO NOVAWORLD
--------------------------
Unlike any other network, NovaWorld is breaking ground
revolutionizing the electronic communication networking with an
simple to use, yet every powerful linking system.
Integration into the Internet. Any system can link into the
master hub, InfoPort in Denver via Telnet and exchange messages, mail
and files. By using the Internet as a backbone, the speed of the
system increases and the costs decrease. Of course systems can also
call via modem to link into the system on regular phone lines.
NOVAWORLD FEATURES
--------------------
- Internet E-Mail for any network connection. No other software
needed. No fancy scripts need to find the Internet, just address your
mail and link into your hub.
- Multi-hop mail to any system (or the Internet) simply by putting
the user name/ system name. Replies are automatically routed back to
the originating system.
- Any Internet newsgroup needed can be gated to your BBS. Replies
are sent seamlessly as a reply, with no special characters needed.
Easy linking through InfoLink. Just a few mouse clicks and a SYSOP
can link a message forum or file forum.
- Subscription to the system forums is easy. No need to have your
network hub set your distribution, It is all automatic. Thus a SYSOP
can start or stop forums automatically, without human intervention.
- Files can be shared with ease among all of the system, making it a
good shareware system for authors.
- PC compatible as well as Macintosh shareware will be distributed.
- Multiple interface options to call into the net with a Macintosh
GUI, RIP graphics for the PC, ANSI, or VT100.
NovaWorld the first Network designed with a human in mind. Hub sites
have been established in Europe, and Canada. Over 50 systems have
joined since its 3/94 inception.
NovaWorld inquiries should be sent to:
----------------------------------------
James Barry
Internet: jmbarry@infoport.com
jmbarry/InfoPort on any NovaWorld system
InfoPort BBS (303) 429-0291
telnet infoport.com
Snail Mail to:
P.O. BOX 620805
Littleton, CO 80162-0805
Voice messages (303)657-9667
============================
3.24 - THE ONENET NETWORK
============================
ABOUT THE ONENET
------------------
The OneNet Member Network is an organization of private
individuals around the world who own FirstClass systems and
hook them together to exchange mail and conferences. While
OneNet members use FirstClass and take advantage of its
built-in gateway features, the OneNet is completely
arm's-length from SoftArc which has nothing to do with
its operation.
A core set of conferences is shared by all systems in the
network and contains discussions of interest to all
computer users. These conferences cover a wide variety
of topics and include networked support conferences from
many computer industry vendors, including SoftArc Inc.,
developers of FirstClass. One of the most popular conferences
on the network is one in which Apple employees routinely
log on to give unofficial advice to other users. Gatewaying
systems can pick their choice of conferences they wish to
carry from the backbone hub systems, which already distribute
more than 400 forums (much as a magazine distributor gives
retailers many choices from which to pick.)
The OneNet Member network now includes more than 500 systems
across the world. There are regional hub sites in Europe,
Japan, Australia, Africa, North and South America and
Hong Kong. More than a half of a million people use the
OneNet at the time of this writing.
CONTACTING THE ONENET
-----------------------
The OneNet Member Network Primary Hub is located in
Boulder Colorado. For questions on how to find your local
OneNet Member Network system, or how to get a 'feed' into
the OneNet, call 303-444-2205. To get more general
information about the OneNet, call the OneNet Los Altos
system by modem at 415-948-1349 or by using the voicemail
system 415-948-4775.
Earthmail inquires should go to:
---------------------------------
Scott Converse, OneNet Executive Director
4546 El Camino Real, # 127
Los Altos, California
94022
USA
Internet address:
OneNet@OneNet.com or Scotto@OneNet.com
Scott Converse, Executive Director, OneNet Member Network
Contact via modem @ 415-948-1349, via voice line @ 415-948-4775
============================
3.25 - Fido Net on the Mac
============================
- Info for this topic will be available in future versions of this
FAQ.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COMPRESSION OF FILES TO SAVE DISK SPACE ON YOUR MAC BBS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3.26 - Why compress files?
3.27 - Stuffit format
3.28 - Compact Pro Format
3.29 - Binhex
3.30 - Zip format
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RIDING A MAC ON THE INTERNET
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- Not provided at the time of this release.
*********************************************************************
CHAPTER 4 - UNIX AT YOUR SERVICE
*********************************************************************
===========================
4.01 - What's a Unix?
===========================
UNIX is an operating system. The original version, called Unics,
was written by Ken Thompson at AT&T's Bell Laboratories in 1969.
In 1973, Thompson and Dennis Ritchie (co-creator of the C
programming language) rewrote it in C. Since C compilers are
available for many systems, UNIX has been "ported" or rewritten
to run on various systems under various names. If you've ever
used Solaris or SunOS on a Sun workstation, HP/UX on a
Hewlett-Packard, AIX on an IBM, AUX on a Mac, IRIX on a
Silicon Graphics workstation, or Xenix or Linux on a PC,
you've used a version of UNIX.
===========================================
4.02 - The Pro's & Cons of a Unix BBS
===========================================
The greatest strength of UNIX is that it was written from
the ground up, as a multi-user system for networked computers.
Therefore, almost any BBS running on UNIX automatically has
multi-user capabilities, and providing network and communication
services is also simple.
UNIX is not a system for the novice, though. It's a fairly
technical system, and for a BBS written on one version of
UNIX to run on another version, the source code usually must
be reconfigured and recompiled. Also, the cheapest UNIX
systems usually cost $3000 or more - too much to spend
unless you know what you're getting into.
===================================================================
4.03 - What factors should I consider when starting BBS on UNIX?
=====================================================================
First and foremost, you should consider what sort of service
you want to provide. If you want fast-moving message areas,
perhaps a small chat area, and possibly a link to some sort
of informational system, one of the Citadels would be your
best choice. If you want to focus on the informational system,
with the BBS as part of it, PANDA would be best. For e-mail
and net-news, XBBS is the way to go, and if you have a Linux PC,
you can use UniBoard or DOC.
Secondly, you need to consider how large a system your UNIX
computer can support. A fast PC can probably handle four or
five users at once. A ten-thousand dollar workstation can
probably handle twenty or thirty. If you want to handle a
thousand users at once, you'd better have deep pockets.
Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, you need to consider
how users will connect to your system. You can connect modems
to your UNIX computer and let them dial in, or you can
establish a connection to the Internet and let them connect
over the network, or both. The Internet lets multiple users
from around the world connect over the same link, so its appeal
is obvious, but if you just want to serve your local community,
you might do just as well without it. You can even go halfway,
and have your computer call the network just to send and
receive electronic mail every night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SHAREWARE/FREEWARE BBS SOFTWARE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What shareware BBSes are available for Unix?
==================
4.04 - Citadel/UX
==================
Citadel/UX runs on UNIX, but looks and feels just like a
Citadel on a PC, Amiga, or Atari ST. At least a half-dozen
BBSes on Internet run versions of this software. It focuses
on fast-moving message bases.
================
4.05 - DOC
================
DOC - short for "Dave's Own Citadel" - is descended from
Citadel/UX. It adds a few new functions, and supports more
users. Internet's biggest DOC BBS can handle nearly 1,000
users at once.
===============
4.06 - PANDA
===============
PANDA is an information server developed at the University of
Iowa. It's not explicitly a BBS, but it can provide BBS-style
message bases within a larger information system. It isn't
truly shareware, but it doesn't have a set price either - you
get to work out your own deal.
=========================
4.07 - UBBS 1.01 (Linux)
=========================
- No information provided for UBBS at the time of this release.
=======================
4.08 - UniBoard 1.12
=======================
UniBoard is a BBS package for Linux, a free version of UNIX that runs
on PC's.
===================
4.09 - XBBS 7.21
===================
XBBS is a menu-driven system which offers message bases,
e-mail, and Usenet news-reading capabilities. Users can't move
through it quite as quickly as they can in Citadel, so it's
easier to keep up with the discussions.
==================
4.10 - Magpie BBS
==================
Magpie BBS, (212)420-0527
Support/Demo System for Magpie BBS/Conferencing Software
Steve Manes, New York, NY
=====================
4.11 - UnixBBS v1.03
=====================
Introduction
--------------
UnixBBS is a complete USENET-compliant BBS package for Unix
SYSV R3/R4 on Intel platforms (386/486). For more info, send
e-mail to pizzi@nervous.com.
UnixBBS v1.03 is available on Akademia Pana Kleksa Public
Unix by calling: (216) 481 9445 HST,V32
Log in either as 'bbs' (for [x,y,z]modem download) or 'nuucp'
(for an uucico session) and request these files:
UBBS103a.tar.Z # PD archiver programs
UBBS103b.tar.Z # the UnixBBS binaries
UBBS103c.tar.Z # the config files and dirs
UBBS103d.tar.Z # documentation
UBBS103p.tar.Z # PD file transfer protocols
If you are in Europe, you could call the Development Site instead:
+39 541 27135 HST,PEP,V32 log in as 'bbs' and download
from file area #8.
What's new in UnixBBS 1.03
--------------------------
- Added support for carbon copies in email section when sending mail.
- Added support for carbon copies in email section when replying to
mail.
- Multiple newsgroups posting is now allowed. A new token named
'AdditionalGroupsAskLevel' in Config.bbs is used to declare the
minimum access level required to be asked for additional newsgroups
when posting new messages. Also, the 'a' flag in the message base
definition files should be used to designate the groups that allow
this feature. To post to additional groups as well as the current
one, the user should have access and post permissions to all the
groups specified.
- A new token in Config.bbs 'EnableQuestionnaire' can be used to turn
the questionnaire function on or off. If disabled, the
questionnaires can still be accessed from the Main Menu, but new
users will no longer be prompted for questionnaire compilation when
they first log in.
- Support for four different outbound mail address formats have been
added. The new token 'MailboxAddressFormat' should be used to specify
which format to use for outgoing email.
- An RFC822 "Reply-To:" header has been added to outgoing news
articles.
- The separator character used in mailbox names is now definable from
the Config.bbs file by modifying the value of the
'MailboxNameSeparator' token. Although the dot '.' used by UnixBBS
1.02 is correct from the RFC point of view, it has been reported to
that some mailers are not compatible.
- A minor bug in bbsmon was fixed that caused the input command in
chat or kill screen to be executed even if no ENTER key was pressed
if the refresh timeout occurred while some value was being entered
on the input line. The bbsmon release id was changed from 1.20 to
1.21.
- A check on the device names given on bbsmon command line has been
added to make sure the names correspond to existing devices.
- A serious bug in the preferred newsgroup reading routine has been
fixed. Now the program shouldn't dump core when removing newsgroup
from the preferred list. Please note also that disabling the
preferred newsgroup reading via the Config file switch will now save
some run-time memory.
- Followups to other newsgroups are now allowed when posting an
article. A new token named 'FollowupToAskLevel' in Config.bbs is
used to declare the minimum access level required to be asked for
followups when posting new messages. Also, the 'w' flag in the
message base definition files should be used to designate the groups
that allow this feature. To be able to follow up to a certain
newsgroup, the user should have access permissions to that group.
The keyword 'poster' in either upper or lower case is parsed
correctly and is used to redirect followups to the original
article's poster by means of e-mail.
NOTE: only a single newsgroup can be specified for the followup.
Also, when following up to an article who has the "Followup-To"
header specifying several newsgroups, only the first one is used
for the followup.
- Fixed a bug that caused the info regarding the last newsgroup
visited to be lost when an user was choosing the 'Top Level' listing
from the Message Menu and then aborting with the 'Q' option.
- The message base navigation system has changed slightly. Now the
user is automatically asked for subgroups (if any) without having to
see the message section menu and to choose the own command once
for each group in the path.
- The file list command in the file section now shows even files
without a description entry (those files without the mirror file in
the description directory)
- The file list command now displays long file descriptions correcty,
pausing after the selected number of screen lines.
- New "Messages Of The Day" function that allows you to create a file
similar to the Unix /etc/motd, useful for telling user news about
the system.
- The 'WelcomePathname' token in Config.bbs has been changed to
'WelcomeExtProgram' for the sake of clearness.
- A new token 'LogoffExtProgram' has been introduced to allow a sysop-
defined program to be run *after* an user has been disconnected
from the BBS. Its main use is to run some dtr-dropping
program if for some reason your serial port driver doesn't drop DTR
when the process dies (i.e. HUPCL doesn't work properly).
- Fixed a bug that caused an error to be reported when a
'Who's on line' command was issued while another user was logging in.
- If colors were enabled, the message editors used to appear colored
when posting or replying in the email section. Now their color will
default to white.
- The sender information in the email section is now correctly
displayed even if the name or address is longer than the reserved
screen size.
- The low-level I/O routines have been optimized
- Fixed a bug that made some newsgroups hierarchies not specified
in the msgroot file visible inside UnixBBS.
- New "Message Dump" function allows users to pack and compress unread
messages in the preferred groups and to download them using the
available transfer protocols. This new option is available from the
Main Menu and should be specified in the mapkey file as
'Main::MsgDump'.
Contacing the author of UnixBBS:
--------------------------------
Riccardo Pizzi @ the Nervous XTC Public Access Unix System,
Rimini, ITALY E-Mail -> pizzi@nervous.com
Nervous XTC, the home of the UnixBBS package
Data: +39-541-27135 HST/PEP/V32
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COMMERCIAL UNIX BBS SOFTWARE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
=-=-=-=-=-=
TEAMate
=-=-=-=-=-=
TEAMate Unix Bulletin Board, (310)318-5302
Demo/Support for TEAMate BBS Software for Unix
Bob Baskerville/MMB Development Corp., Manhattan Beach, CA
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UNIX HARDWARE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
=====================================================================
What would I need to start a small dial-up BBS to run on a UNIX box?
=====================================================================
The simplest UNIX system consists of a '286, '386, Amiga or Macintosh
running a small version of UNIX. You could install one of the freely
available BBSes for UNIX (scaled down to reflect the somewhat limited
capabilities of the system), connect a modem, set things up, and away
you go! Obviously, that's a very simplistic arrangement - only two
people (you at the keyboard, and one user calling in) could be online
at the same time.
If you wanted to get a little more elaborate and had a '386 or better,
you could get 4 serial ports (COM1 through COM4), and put modems on
at least three of them (leaving the fourth one free for a mouse).
You'd need to get a telephone line for each modem, of course. For
example, you could have a high-speed modem on one port, and a lower
speed modem on another port, so that lower speed users wouldn't keep
tying up your high-speed modem.
===============================================================
What hardware & software do I need to network my Unix BBS?
================================================================
- no outline provided
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